


The Gift Shop

by Springmagpies



Series: AU August 2020 [5]
Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Hospital, F/M, Fluff, meet cute
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-05
Updated: 2020-08-05
Packaged: 2021-03-05 20:08:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,082
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25741078
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Springmagpies/pseuds/Springmagpies
Summary: Kicked out of her sister's delivery room, Jemma goes wandering about the hospital. Catching sight of a cute gift for her new nephew, she decides to go into the gift shop. There she finds something cuter than the plush toy she had been planning to buy. There she finds Fitz.
Relationships: Leo Fitz/Jemma Simmons
Series: AU August 2020 [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1862158
Comments: 14
Kudos: 66
Collections: AOS AU August 2020





	The Gift Shop

**Author's Note:**

> Some fluff for day 5 of AU August!! Enjoy!

Jemma was still half-asleep when she left her flat. She was in leggings and a baggy Doctor Who jumper, her hair was pulled into a messy bun on the crown of her head, and she had forgone putting on makeup, deciding she could make herself more presentable when she got to the hospital.

Why was she traveling to the hospital in such a rush, you might ask? Well, her younger sister, Evangeline, was having a baby and all hands had to be on deck for the new arrival. Her sister wanted the family near, but apparently changed her mind on them actually being in the delivery room the moment Jemma arrived. There were no hard feelings and seeing that her mother was fussing, her brother-in-law was panicking, and her father was resolutely unsure where to sit, Jemma decided it best if she just wandered about the hospital until someone called for her. 

Having gone without breakfast, Jemma moved first towards the hospital cafeteria. The food choice was rather dull and the tea left something to be desired. Still starving, still tired, and somewhat lost as to what she should be doing, she continued meandering about until she came across the hospital coffee shop.  _ Bless whoever thought of putting a coffee shop in a hospital,  _ Jemma thought to herself as she got herself a finally decent cup of tea. Across the way from the little coffee place was the gift shop. She would have simply passed the place had the sweetest plush giraffe not caught her eye. There was a whole menagerie of animals on display, but her sister had always been fond of giraffes and it would be a nice gift for the baby. Sure she had already gotten her sister the highest-grade carseat with the best safety rating of any on the market, but the toy wasn’t expensive and it would be a nice token of love for her new nephew. 

The gift shop was full of other tempting purchases and Jemma had to go to great pains not to purchase every single item in the store. It was all so cute. Each stuffed animal appeared to call her name with their over-large eyes and soft fur. And she should have known better than to walk in on an empty stomach as there was an entire display of candy just sitting there for her to browse and buy from. 

It had been a long morning and Jemma felt she was allowed something sweet. She also felt that her family would benefit from some sugar to keep them going through what was becoming a long labor. Her poor sister couldn’t eat anything except for ice chips, but Jemma decided to get something she could eat when she was able. With the plush giraffe under one arm, Jemma moved towards the candy and began picking out an item per family member. Among her pile was a Flake, two Kit-Kats, a Whispa, and the last pack of Maltesers the shop had. Apparently, she wasn’t the only one being tempted by sweets as a man came to stand next to her and appeared to be looking for something in particular. 

From the few glances she dared in his direction, Jemma found the man to be quite handsome. He looked about her age, dressed in a t-shirt and jeans with a dark grey cardigan over top, and had a nice bit of scruff on his cheeks. Pretending to look for another candy bar, she chanced another glance at him. Their eyes met for a brief second and he smiled, leaving Jemma to blush the color of a peony. She returned the smile but quickly focused her gaze back to the display shelf. She only looked up again when she heard the sound of a small voice. 

“Have you found it?” said a little girl no older than five. She hopped with both feet together as she talked, grabbing onto the sleeve of the man’s cardigan with one hand while balancing a plush toy of her own under the other arm. 

“Not yet, little bird,” the man said in a Scottish brogue that took Jemma by surprise. The girl was English so she had been expecting her father’s accent to match. Of course children’s accents don’t always match their parents, but she still hadn’t been expecting the man to be Scottish. 

The little one leaned her forehead against the man’s side. “Are they all out?”

“They must be. I’m not seeing them, Birdie.”

“No Maltesers?”

“Nope.”

A small frown formed on the girl’s face and it broke Jemma’s heart to see it.

“Excuse me,” Jemma said, walking towards the pair, “I heard you say you were looking for Maltesers.”

“They’re all out,” the little girl informed through a sigh, shaking her blonde bob sadly.

Jemma made a sullen face and mimicked the small shake of the head. “Oh, that’s no fun.”

“We’re disappointed too.”

The girl’s response was so heartfelt and cute that it took everything for Jemma not to laugh. Instead, she said, “Well, I actually have the last pack of Maltesers, but I was thinking of getting a Twix instead. Since I no longer want them, would you like to have them instead?”

Face suddenly beaming as bright as sunlight, the girl looked up to the man who nodded at her with a smile. She turned back to Jemma and said, “I would.”

Jemma grinned and stooped to hand the little girl the package. 

“What do you say,” the man prompted.

“Thank you, miss.”

“Of course. And you can call me Jemma.”

The girl smiled brightly, holding the candy along with her plush yellow duck close to her chest. “Thank you, Jemma.”

The man put his hand gently atop the little one’s head as he brushed her bangs from her forehead with his thumb. “Hey, Birdie,” he said, “can you go get me a bottle of water.”

She nodded. “Sure thing, boss.”

As the girl skipped away to the front of the shop, the man placed his hands in his pockets and watched her fly across the store to the fridges before turning back to Jemma.

“Thank you,” he smiled. 

The look made his eyes bright and Jemma was taken by their particular shade of blue. So much so, she almost forgot to respond. 

“Of course,” she said when she finally came back to herself, “Your daughter is very sweet.”

A look of confusion passed quickly over the man’s face before he let out a light chuckle. “Oh, Penelope isn’t mine.”

Jemma felt herself blush again. “Oh, I’m so sorry. I just assumed--”

“No, it’s alright. I can see the confusion. She’s actually my goddaughter. My friends are here having their second child so I’m here to watch the first.”

“That’s very nice of you.”

“Well, it’s not a burden. Birdie’s a handful, but as you saw she’s a sweetheart.”

Just at that moment, the girl returned with a skip and a hop.

“Can I get this too, Fitz?” she asked, holding up another stuffed animal. 

“No, you’ve already picked the duck.”

“But this one is small. It won’t be a lot.” She put on puppy dog eyes and Jemma bit her lip to keep from smiling as Fitz, as the girl had called him, tried to fight off the ploy. 

“It’s a no from me, little bird.”

“This one’s a monkey though,” she coaxed. 

“Penelope, you shall not bribe me with monkeys. Now hop with me over to the register and put it back on the way.”

Having finished picking out all her own items as well, Jemma followed the duo to pay for her things. Fitz had told her she could go first in the line, but she declined the offer. They had been there first after all. And, if she were being honest, she simply wanted the opportunity to continue the conversation a bit longer. Only two people were ahead of Fitz, but the older gentleman at the front seemed to be taking his time, something Jemma didn’t mind in the slightest. 

“So, your friends are having another baby,” Jemma said as they stepped forward in the line, “That’s exciting.”

“Yeah,” Fitz said, a glowing smile appearing on his face. 

“Boy or girl?” she asked.

“Girl.”

“We’re naming her Eileen,” Penelope piped up. “But me and Fitz are gonna call her Nellie. We decided in the car. Nellie Hunter-Morse is a good name, don’t you think?”

“That’s a lovely name,” Jemma said. 

“We think so too. Nellie will just be a nickname, but it’s still what we’ll call her.”

“I see. Do you have a nickname too?”

The girl nodded. “Fitz and my Uncle Mack call me Birdie.”

“Why Birdie?” Jemma asked politely. 

“Because she’s always flying about singing,” Fitz supplied, ruffling the feather-light hair on the bird’s head. For some reason, the sweet look on his face and how good he was with the little one made butterflies swoop in Jemma’s stomach. Oh goodness, was she developing a crush on this man? For heaven’s sake, she was.

The old man at the front had finally finished buying his balloons and greeting card, and so the line lurched forward. Once they were settled, Fitz turned back once more to talk to her.

“So, what brings you to the hospital gift shop, if you don’t mind me asking.”

“My sister is having her baby.”

“Is it a b--”

“It’s a boy,” Jemma said with a happy smile that Fitz returned. 

“What’s his name?” Penelope asked, pulling on Fitz’s hand in excitement despite the fact she was talking to Jemma.

"I’m not sure yet. I think they liked the name Theodore.”

“Sounds fancy,” Penelope said matter-of-factly. 

“I think you’re right. We could call him Teddy.”

Penelope grinned at that and gave a thumbs up that made Jemma giggle.

The person ahead of them finishing their transaction, it was Fitz’s and Penelope’s turn to pay for their items. The little bird went on tiptoes to place all their items on the counter. Jemma noticed she had slyly placed the small monkey with the rest. Either Fitz didn’t notice or he truly did have a weakness for toy monkeys for he paid for it as well. He also took a bit of extra time to write something down on the end of his receipt. He tore whatever it was off and moved to the side to let Jemma place her things on the counter. 

“Well, congratulations on your nephew, Jemma,” Fitz said.

“Thank you. Congratulations to you as well.”

For some reason, Jemma didn’t want the conversation to end. In fact, she very much wanted to see Fitz again. Summoning her nerves so as to not let this sweet man before her become the one that got away, Jemma took a step forward only for the two of them to start talking over one another. 

“I’m so sorry--”

“You go--”

“No you--”

“I--umm.” Fitz took a deep breath. “I was wondering if you would want to get a cup of tea with me sometime.”

Heart hammering in her chest and the peony pink blush returning, Jemma nodded her head as her face split into a smile. “I was about to ask you the same thing.”

“Great minds think alike,” he laughed.

“Seems they do,” she replied. 

With another chuckle, he handed her the piece of torn off receipt. “My number,” he said.

And with that and a quick goodbye from both him and Penelope, the two were off and Jemma paid for her giraffe and chocolate, feeling the happiest she had ever been.

Later, while holding her sweet little nephew, Teddy, Jemma told her family what had happened at the gift shop. 

“Did you seriously get hit on while I was having a baby?” her sister said, folding her arms and smirking. She had been very near falling back asleep from exhaustion, but the information seemed to give Evangeline a small burst of energy.

“I don’t know if hit on is the correct phrase, but I was definitely asked out.”

“And,” her mother pressed.

“We’re meeting for tea and a trip to the museum on Friday.”

“Wow,” her father said, leaning back in his chair, “Lucky there was only one pack of Maltesers. If you end up having kids with this Fitz lad, that could be the name of your first born.”

In the end, Jemma and Fitz did end up having kids, but they didn’t name their first Maltesers. Instead they went with Maisie. 

**Author's Note:**

> Find me on Tumblr @springmagpies


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